


Witches don't have nightmares

by Dawninlatin



Category: Throne of Glass Series - Sarah J. Maas
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Nightmares, One Shot, Post-Book 7: Kingdom of Ash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:15:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,123
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24542935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dawninlatin/pseuds/Dawninlatin
Summary: Manon wakes up after a nightmare. Dorian comforts her.One shot set after Kingdom of Ash.
Relationships: Manon Blackbeak/Dorian Havilliard
Comments: 4
Kudos: 41





	Witches don't have nightmares

"NO!" Manon screamed as she once again saw the Thirteen speed towards the Witch Tower, saw them Yield, one by one, the bright lights blinding her. Over and over again, she saw Asterin's face as she said her last words. _Live, Manon, live._ Over and over again, she saw her coven, her _family_ , sacrifice themselves, saw them disappear forever, leaving her behind, lost and alone in a world too big, too bright-

Manon jerked into a sitting position, taking in her surroundings. It was always like this, waking up bewildered, not knowing where she was or who she was. She had to repeat to herself, multiple times, that this wasn't Theralis, she was safe, she was in bed, in Rifthold. It wasn't real, it was only a nightmare. The sound of the war drums, the sound of dying men, it was all in her head. It was over, she was safe. 

Once her heart had calmed enough to assure her she wasn't dying, once she had managed to control her breathing - if only slightly - she laid back down on her pillow, staring into the darkness of the room. Sleep would not reclaim her, not tonight.

 _The world was so quiet,_ Manon mused to herself. And it felt wrong, so very wrong for the world to be so quiet, when there was still roaring in her head, when she still saw their faces, when she was still shaking and trying to just _breathe._

It was when she became aware of the sound of someone else's breathing, calm and quiet and so unlike hers at the moment, that Manon remembered she wasn't alone. Turning her head, her eyes fell upon the King of Adarlan, who was sleeping peacefully. _Thank the goddess,_ Manon thought, relieved she hadn't woken him this time. Sometimes, she would scream so loud, would thrash so violently she woke him too. He had his own demons keeping him up at night, he didn't need to bear the weight of hers too.

She studied Dorian's features as he slept. He looked different in sleep. During the day he was all sharp lines and smirking lips, and he was handsome, there was no denying it, but it was at night, when his features turned soft and boyish, so full of youth, that Manon was truly taken aback by how much she loved him.

 _Love,_ what a strange word. Manon often wondered how she had managed to go so long without it. A whole century she had lived, and she had not allowed herself to feel, to love, not once. She wished she had. Wished she had showed the Thirteen that she cared. Because she _had_ loved them, and would always keep loving them, until the darkness came to claim her too.

Her chest clenched as she thought about them all, as she relived her nightmare, and Manon could do nothing but crawl into Dorian's arms, burying her face in his neck. It ruined her attempt at letting him sleep, but she craved his warmth, craved his comforting touch, and she knew he wouldn't blame her. 

Dorian understood her in a way no one could. He had nightmares too, nightmares that made him claw frantically at his neck, nightmares that made his magic coat the whole room with ice, nightmares that had him screaming a woman's name. _Sorscha._ He had never told her exactly what happened, but Manon knew he had loved her, deeply, and that she had died. _One day,_ he always said after those nightmares. _One day I will tell you. All of it._

Manon breathed in his familiar scent, letting it fill her, ground her, soothe her. 

His own breathing turned quicker, uneven, and she knew she had roused him from his deep slumber. Manon would have felt guilty about it, had the way he tightened his hold around her, the way he stroked her hair away from her sweat-slick forehead not been so soothing.

"Witchling," he whispered, his voice low and hoarse. 

Drawing a shuddering breath, Manon let her shaking body melt completely into his. Only with him, only with Dorian, would she ever allow herself to be so vulnerable, so naked. 

"Can't sleep?" Dorian murmured into her hair, stroking her sides. Manon merely nodded, not trusting her ability to speak just yet.

"Did you have a nightmare?" he asked as he pressed a kiss to her forehead. 

Manon took another deep breath before willing herself to speak. "Witches don't have nightmares." Her voice was barely audible, and she struggled against the tears pressing behind her eyes. Of course witches had nightmares, she knew that, and by the look Dorian was giving her, he knew too. 

"Do you need to talk about it?" _Not yet,_ Manon thought. Not yet could she form the words necessary to express what she was feeling. Not yet could she describe her sorrow and the heavy weight she would forever carry in her heart. She had never been good at that, had always bottled up her feelings, hiding them deep inside her. In the end, it had almost been too much to bear, had almost broken her. _Tomorrow,_ she decided as she shook her head, clinging to Dorian as if he was her sole lifeline.

He resumed his stroking and Manon felt calm enough that she _might_ would be able to drift back to sleep. They laid like that for a while, in silence, heart to heart, tracing the lines of each other's bodies, until Manon spoke once more. "Will it always hurt this much?" She choked out the words, her voice cracking in the end, turning to a raspy whisper. The tears couldn't be stopped this time.

Dorian was silent for a long while, so long that Manon was about to apologize for asking. She knew who he was thinking about, it was why she had asked, after all. Then he drew a quivering breath, wiped her tears away with his thumbs, and said, "Yes. It never stops hurting, but you learn how to live with it." He pressed a kiss to one of her closed eyelids, then the other. "You learn how to endure it."

Manon opened her eyes, and met his sapphire blue ones, taking her in with such intensity. There were tears shining in his eyes now, too. Leaning down, she pressed a featherlight kiss to his full lips, letting her mouth linger against his. "I love you, Dorian," she whispered, a single tear falling from her eye, landing on his cheek.

"I love you too, Manon," he whispered back, and she felt the words against her lips more than she heard them.

And so Manon settled on his broad chest once more, letting herself fall asleep, feeling safe in his arms.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading<3
> 
> I am working on chapter 8 of Queen of Peace (will be out Friday or Saturday, pinky promise), but I got the idea for this little scene, and had to write it.
> 
> Feel free to leave a comment letting me know what you think. All feedback is appreciated, both good and bad. You can also find me on Tumblr as @dawninlatin :)
> 
> Peace&Love<3


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